No rest for the warrior

TAMPA, Fla. — Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Wednesday praised the new head of Central Command, Gen. James Mattis, for a “brilliant and eventful military career” — just as Mattis is about to preside over two wars at critical crossroads.

Mattis was sworn in as the drawdown of troops nears completion in Iraq and the surge of forces in Afghanistan is almost finished. The change comes as a result of the embarrassing Rolling Stone article that forced the resignation of Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who was replaced by Gen. David Petraeus, now in Kabul.

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Petraeus’s departure left a vacancy, now filled by Mattis, a colorful figure respected for his battlefield acumen and the vigor with which he has executed a variety of missions in the very theaters that he now oversees.

“General Mattis is one of the most formidable warrior-scholars of his generation,” said Gates, who remarked that he had attended three such changes of commands in Tampa — from Gen. John Abizaid to Adm. William “Fox” Fallon, who was forced out after another article, in Esquire, over comments about Iran. Fallon was replaced by Petraeus.

Gates noted that Mattis had been looking forward to a “very well-earned rest” in Washington state. “Fat chance,” said Gates, who also calls Washington home and has joked for years that he continues to fail in his desire to retire there. Mattis, he said, “answered the call of his country.”

The short, evening ceremony was Marine-friendly, with Gen. James “Hoss” Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Commandant Gen. James Conway, who is due to retire from the Corps this fall, both attending. And Mattis’s arrival puts a very Marine feel to MacDill Air Force Base since both Mattis and Lt. Gen. John Allen, who served as acting commander and will continue on as deputy commander, will be at Central Command.

Mattis, whose rhetorical missteps over the years are well documented — saying once that it was “fun” to kill Taliban because of the way they mistreat women, for example — kept his remarks bland, saying he would provide “my independent assessment of the challenges and opportunities we face.”

But he let slip a light opener after hearing Gates, Allen and Cartwright all sing his praises. “After hearing that many good things about me, I thought it was a eulogy,” Mattis quipped.